Brisbane International Terminal bathrooms named Australia's best

International travellers needing to spend a penny at Brisbane Airport’s International Terminal are in for a nice surprise! The terminal’s refurbished bathrooms have been named Australia’s Best Bathroom Facility.

Now in its third year, the Best Bathroom Facility competition is run by Total Facilities, Australia’s largest facilities management exhibition, and the aim is to advocate washroom wellbeing. “A grotty restroom environment can make or break a company’s reputation,” says Total Facilities’ Event Manager, Andrew Lawson. “Our awards were established to encourage awareness and pride among Australia’s facilities and workplace management professionals. And they set a great precedent.”

So what makes Brisbane Airport’s International loos special?

Krishan Tangri, Brisbane Airport Corporation’s General Manager Assets, describes the recently refurbished bathrooms as “the all-important first impression of our city, state and country”. “When international travellers set foot in one of our newly refurbished bathrooms, they’re taken on an aspirational journey around Australia – before they’ve even left the airport,” he says.

“We embarked on a bold redevelopment of our terminal bathrooms to not only improve existing facilities and achieve compliance with new disability access legislation, but to also provide a unique visual experience different from other common public bathrooms.”

The terminal’s bathrooms showcase various Queensland and Australian experiences and locations in large format. Stunning large scale wall photography includes scenes of the rugged Queensland outback, iconic native animals, the spectacular Daintree rainforest, a summer’s day on Bondi Beach, and turquoise beach waves lapping at pristine white sand shores. “In a word, Brisbane Airport’s bathrooms are memorable – for all the right reasons,” says Mr Tangri.

There are also state-of-the-art wash basins, urinals and hand-dryers.

And how about cleanliness? That goes without saying. Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) has a rigorous 24/7 cleaning schedule, with staff checking/cleaning each facility every 60 minutes. But that’s not all. The bathrooms also feature new Dr Voxx interactive feedback systems (IFS), which are installed in each bathroom and enable users to provide instant feedback via touchscreens. It’s easy, you just rate the bathroom from poor to excellent.

“This allows us to gain valuable insights into customer experience at key service points throughout the airport and alerts BAC’s cleaning supervisors when facilities are determined to be unacceptable by customers – e.g. when three or more ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ customer responses are received in less than five minutes,” Mr Tangri explains.

From décor to design, aesthetics to environment

Each year the Best Bathroom Facility competition is open to public and private bathrooms – e.g. in commercial buildings, shopping centres, hotels or recreational grounds. But they must go above and beyond in the design or cleanliness stakes. “We evaluate bathrooms on design, innovation, aesthetics and products and services that improve wellbeing for everyone,” explains Total Facilities’ Andrew Lawson. “This competition profiles some of the most progressive organisations which are at the forefront of bathroom experiences.”

This year second place was awarded to the toilet block in Arthur’s Seat State Park, Victoria, which has an environmentally sensitive design and features rainwater harvesting, solar energy and onsite sewerage treatment facilities.

And the world-renowned public bathrooms on level 35 of the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins were awarded third place. They’re featured in Lonely Planet and are well worth checking out – even just for the stunning views over Melbourne!

There were four worthy finalists including:

Eco Outdoor Richmond Showroom, Victoria, which was designed to showcase Eco’s beautiful range of stone flooring and walling.

CoffeeTec showroom in Sydney, recognised for its smart design, cleanliness and facilities.

The Cohuna Memorial Hall in Kerang, Victoria, whose disabled and ambulant toilet facilities are bold and bright, with the latest in amenities and non-slip floors to ensure the safety of patrons.

Patchell Plaza public amenities in Kerang, Victoria, which was fully renovated to be functional, bright, fun and welcoming.